US has Aussie craft approaching fast

Two Australian firms, Incat and Austal, have enjoyed remarkable success in the US naval market. Next target - Canberra!
High-speed vessels are well established in commercial transport enterprises with fast catamarans a feature of numerous major ferry routes around the globe. Two Australian companies are world leaders when it comes to high-speed multi hull ships, namely Austal from Western Australia and Incat of Tasmania. Both companies are working hard to migrate their expertise to the military domain, and with increasing interest from the United States in both fast logistics and combat vessels it seems there is every chance that they will enjoy further success.

In recent years both companies have made significant advances into the US military market. Incat has three Australian-made ships currently serving with US forces, including one that was deployed to the waters off southern Iraq as a Special Forces platform in the opening hours of the recent war. Austal has one of their high-speed catamarans in service with the US Marines while the company also has a considerable interest in the competition for the US Navy Littoral Combat Ship contract as a member of the General Dynamics Bath Iron Works team.

While some preliminary evaluation of high speed vessels (HSV) had already been undertaken by various US agencies, the US military's interest in such craft really began after the Royal Australia Navy chartered an 86 metre Incat catamaran in 1999, the HMAS Jervis Bay, and used her successfully to transport troops and equipment from Darwin to East Timor during the INTERFET deployment.

During a two-year contract the Jervis Bay completed 107 trips covering over 100,000 nautical miles, carried 20,000 passengers and 430 military vehicles and shipped over 5,600 tons. She travelled at 43 knots fully loaded and 48 knots lightship, and usually made the 430 nautical miles between Darwin and Dilli in less than 11 hours. The vessel certainly caught the attention of US Navy Seventh Fleet personnel during the peacekeeping operations.

With interest from the US increasing, Incat moved in 2001 to form a strategic alliance with American shipbuilders Bollinger Shipyard Inc of Louisiana, and then later that year the US Tank-Automotive and Armament Command (TACOM) awarded the Bollinger/Incat USA team a charter contract for a HSV to be used as an evaluation platform for various trials and demonstrations. A 96 metre catamaran, HSV-X1 Joint Venture, underwent six weeks of technical and structural modifications to meet the military's requirements. Modifications included the building and installation of a helicopter pad suitable for large helicopters such as the SH-60 Seahawk and the CH-46 Sea Knight. Incat also designed and constructed a two-part, hydraulically operated vehicle ramp that allows rapid loading and discharge of vehicles from the stern or alongside it.

TACOM have been using the vessel to demonstrate its ability to perform specific mission scenarios and limited operational experiments and to move troops, heavy military vehicles and equipment. The US Army's focus for experimentation is to validate and assess the vessel's capability for meeting the needs of Army transformation. Concepts that will be considered are simultaneous deployment and employment of the Objective Force; fight on arrival; en route mission planning and rehearsal; passengers and equipment moving together; bypassing strategic and operational chokepoints; and entry operations at multiple points.

The HSV-X1 can do 35-40 knots where the Army's current Logistics Support Vessel (LSV) only averages about 12 knots. The HSV has the ability to push troops and a crew into theatre about four times as fast as the LSV. The joint-service experiment is being co-ordinated by the Navy Warfare Development Command in close partnership with elements of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.

Joint Venture has excelled during her deployment in the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. It was HSV-X1that, just hours after Operation Iraqi Freedom began, sped into the shallow Persian Gulf waters near the southern Iraqi port of Umm Qasr, acting as an afloat forward staging base for Marine Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Teams and Navy SEAL commandos.

In October 2002 TACOM leased a second HSV from Incat, a 98m pre-existing new-build vessel christened Spearhead and given the designation TSV-1X. This Theatre Support Vessel was modified at Incat's Hobart yard in accordance with US Army requirements prior to delivery.

TSV-1X is part of the Advanced Concept Technology Demonstrator (ACTD) program, a joint effort by the acquisition and operational communities within the US Department of Defense. ACTD's often begin by identifying significant military needs and then matching them with current commercial technology or other programs ready to focus on military application.

The third Incat vessel in US service has been leased by the US Navy's Military Sealift Command, and was delivered in August 2003. HSV Swift will serve operationally as an interim Mine Warfare Command and Support Ship, and support transformational mine warfare modular mission payload initiatives. In support of US Navy experimentation, the HSV will be used to explore concepts, capabilities and military utility associated with the advanced hull and propulsion technology integrated with advanced communications in support of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program.

For the Marine Corps, the Swift will conduct a series of limited-objective experiments, exercises, demonstrations and training events that develop interoperability potential of high-speed vessels with causeways, watercraft, amphibious ships and other shipping. Experimentation data will be used to assess the military utility of HSVs and future applications for joint operations.

If a construction contract results from the various demonstration trials described above, the US Jones Act would dictate that the new vessels will be built at one of Bollinger's 14 shipyards on or near the US coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Incat would, of course, seek to maximise the Australian contribution to any build program. The US Army is reported to be considering a 17-ship acquisition for Theatre Support Vessels at a cost of about $US85 million apiece.

Austal's advance into the US military market has been no less impressive. The company formed a joint venture, Austal USA, with US firm Bender Shipbuilding and Repair in December 1999 with a view to pursuing both military and civilian contracts. The 101 metre Austal catamaran, WestPac Express, was chartered by US Navy Military Sealift Command in 2001 to work with the US Marines.

The Westpac Express is described by Austal as a hybrid vessel that is a combination of roll-on/roll-off passenger ferry and cargo freighter. The ship has two vehicle and cargo decks with a combined 33,000 square feet of storage space and can travel at speeds of more than 40 knots. She enables a Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) to rapidly transport a complete battalion of 950 marines together with up to 300 tons of vehicles and equipment, in one lift, with considerable strategic and cost advantages.

WestPac Express has been used by III MEF for the rapid deployment of Marine battalions and equipment in the Western Pacific for training exercises. The vessel has transported nearly every piece of equipment in the Marine Corps inventory, excluding fixed wing aircraft, CH-53E helicopters and M-1A1 tanks. During the trial period, the HSV also transported civilian fire trucks, in an effort to test the Marine Corps' ability to respond to potential requests for humanitarian assistance or disaster relief.

During an initial two month "proof of concept" trial period, the vessel transported more than 10,000 Marines and some 7.5 million kg of cargo from Okinawa to destinations such as mainland Japan, Korea and Guam. This amount of cargo is equivalent to 276 C-17 transport aircraft flights. The WestPac Express has allowed III MEF to reduce in-transit days and permitted more equipment and personnel to be transported as a complete unit.

In another HSV related development Austal USA has been awarded a contract to build a high-speed catamaran that will be used to demonstrate advanced hull form technology to the United States Office of Naval Research (ONR). The 31.2 metre vessel will be built for American Marine Holdings, which has been awarded a contract to deliver and demonstrate its Sea Coaster military vessel design to the ONR. The ONR co-ordinates, executes and promotes the science and technology programs of the Navy and Marine Corps as well as providing technical advice to the Chief of Naval Operations and the Secretary of the Navy.

The Sea Coaster catamaran design features cavities in each hull into which air is blown with the aim of reducing resistance and thus allowing higher speeds to be obtained. Following its evaluation by the ONR, American Marine Holdings expects various areas of the US military to decide on potential applications for the air-inducted technology and subsequently order additional vessels for specific uses.

The potential of both existing and emerging fast ship technology for military applications, and the US's apparent intention to explore and likely embrace this technology has caused a number of navies around the world to think again about various build programs on their horizon.

Speaking at the recent Pacific 2004 Naval and Maritime exhibition, Dr Mark Thomson, Program Director Budget and Management for the Australian Strategic Policy Institute said, "There is a tendency to think about the national shipbuilding and repair sector in terms of just Tenix and ADI with ASC as the poor cousin. But things are changing. Not only is ASC now looking much more viable but outside players like Incat and Austal are knocking on the door. Admittedly, these recent arrivals represent a distinctly different type of maritime technology. But who's to say that this is not the naval technology of the future.

"Although it's difficult to see how the capabilities of the Air Warfare Destroyer could be translated onto a multi-hull fast vessel at this point in the development of naval high speed vessels, the amphibious and sea-lift ships are a different matter. Is Navy going to look at the alternative of modern high-speed vessels in these roles, or has the decision already been taken to go with a conventional, slow, steel hulled design? Lets hope they keep an open mind when looking for a design. It would be a pity if the range of options was constrained before we see what sort of innovative solutions firms like Austal and Incat can come up with to fulfil these roles," he said.

The Royal Australian Navy has accumulated operational experience with a high speed vessel via its lease of the Jervis Bay, but it is not totally clear yet whether or not there is a long term future for such ships in our fleet. The ADF's joint requirements will to a large extent dictate the design of Navy's future amphibious, support and air warfare vessels, and decisions on what form the next generation those ships will take and who will build them are large on the Defence portfolio's 2004 agenda.

By Daniel Cotterill, Canberra